Detergent dispensing shower head



p i 2, 1963 E. R. GRAUEL 3,033,915

DETERGENT DISPENSING SHOWER HEAD Filed Feb. 14, 1961 IN VIENTOR 0449/;

ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,083,915 DETERGENT DISPENSING SHOWER HEAD Ernest R. Grauel, 406 /2 Wheatland Ave., Logansport, Ind. Filed Feb. 14, 1961, Ser. No. 89,241 2 Claims. (Cl. 239310) This invention relates to a shower head, and more particularly to a shower head having means for introducing soap or detergent into the spray produced at the shower head.

An object of this invention is the provision of means to selectively deliver plain water or a mixture of water and liquid soap to a spray producing device that may be readily attached to a water supply pipe.

Another object of this invention is to provide a shower head having means for mixing liquid soap with the bath water as it is supplied thereby.

A further object of the invention is the modification of a conventional shower head to provide means for introducing liquid soap into the spray produced thereby.

An additional object of this invention is the provision of a shower head having means for introducing, at will, a desired amount of liquid soap into the bath water as it issues therefrom.

These and other objects will be apparent upon consideration of the following specification taken with the accompanying drawings forming a part thereof.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a side view of my improved shower head;

FIG. 2 is a front view on a larger scale, and

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of a portion of FIG. 1 with parts in section on the line 3--3 of FIG. 2.

In FIG. 1, I show a shower head 10, of substantially known construction, having a coupling 12 connected to a water supply pipe 14. The shower head proper H comprises a tubular body 16 having an inlet 17 and an outwardly flared intermediate wall portion 18, and an enlarged substantially cylindrical outer or exit end wall portion 20. The inner annular surface of the cylindrical wall 20 has a slightly outwardly tapered end portion 22. A disc shaped plug 24 having a correspondingly tapered peripheral surface is inserted in the enlarged open end of the head H and seated in the tapered annular surface portion 22. This closure disc shaped plug 24 is provided with an axially opening 26 to accommodate a screw 28 which is threaded at its inner end into an opening 30* in a spider 32 affixed to the interior of the portion 20.

On the tapered wall portion 22 I provide an annular groove 34 to which is connected an inlet port 36. A tube or pipe section 38 is suitably connected to the inlet port 36 and carries a head valve 40 therein. A liquid soap container 42 is connected to the valved pipe section 38, and is adapted to supply liquid soap under control of the valve 40 to the annular groove or chamber 34.

The disc plug 24 is provided on its peripheral surface with an annular series of substantially axially extending grooves '44 which cooperate with the tapered inner wall 22 to form small passages and the spray head for the bath water supplied through the pipe 14.

An alternative liquid soap supply is indicated by the broken line tube 46 which may also be connected to the valve 41 and to a suitable tank containing a supply of liquid soap. Such arrangement would preferably be used where several such shower heads are in use in a shower room, as in a club or a factory.

In use, when bath water is flowing through the spray grooves 44, the user may open the valve 40 to connect the liquid soap supply 42 or 46 to the annular chamber 34. Bath water passing through these grooves 44 will pick up liquid soap from the chamber 34 and carry it as suds into the spray. After suitable soaping has been accomplished, the user may close the valve 40 so that clear, rinsing water may flow, as a spray through the grooves 44 which will also rinse out the annular chamber 34.

By reference to the annular series of spray grooves 44, as best shown in FIG. 3, it will be noted that they are preferably outwardly flared or tapered. 'Ihis outwardly flaring of the openings causes a reduction in pressure of the streams of spray water toward the outer open ends of these grooves producing better liquid soap pickup and mixing before issuance from the wider open ends thereof.

It should be apparent that I have provided a simple and effective means for introducing liquid soap into the spray produced by a shower head. Various modifications may be made within the skill of the art and the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A detergent mixing shower head comprising a generally bell-shaped head casing the smaller upstream end of which is adapted to be connected to a conduit for supplying water to the interior thereof, the larger outer end of said head casing having an annular outwardly flared inner face extending to the outer end thereof, an annular groove extending circumferentially of said face between the inner and outer ends thereof, a closure plug secured within the outer end of said head casing and having its periphery tapered in conformity with said flared inner face thereof, thereby closing the inner side of said groove and providing an annular chamber in said face of said head casing, an annular series of circumferentially spaced outwardly flaring spray grooves in the tapered surface of said plug, each said spray groove communicating at its inner smaller end with the interior of said head casing and at one side thereof with said annular groove to provide a common mixing chamber therein, and means for supplying a detergent to said annular groove.

2. The device as defined in claim 1, in which said means for supplying a detergent to said annular groove and mixing chamber comprises an outlet tube connected to a port in said head casing, a manually controlled valve in said inlet tube, and a detergent supply container connected to said valve.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,347,520 Rasch July 27, 1920 2,246,211 Kilich June 17, 1941 2,269,901 Bletcher Jan. 13, 1942 2,608,443 Hinderer Aug. 26, 1952 2,743,913 Gundlach May 1, 1956 2,936,958 Sharnes et a1. May 17, 1960 FOREIGN PATENTS 624,197 Great Britain May 30, 1949 

1. A DETERGENT MIXING SHOWER HEAD COMPRISING A GENERALLY BELL-SHAPED HEAD CASING THE SMALLER UPSTREAM END OF WHICH IS ADAPTED TO BE CONNECTED TO A CONDUIT FOR SUPPLYING WATER TO THE INTERIOR THEREOF, THE LARGER OUTER END OF SAID HEAD CASING HAVING AN ANNULAR OUTWARDLY FLARED INNER FACE EXTENDING TO THE OUTER END THEREOF, AN ANNULAR GROOVE EXTENDING CIRCUMFERENTIALLY OF SAID FACE BETWEEN THE INNER AND OUTER ENDS THEREOF, A CLOSURE PLUG SECURED WITHIN THE OUTER END OF SAID HEAD CASING AND HAVING ITS PERIPHERY TAPERED IN CONFORMITY WITH SAID FLARED INNER FACE THEREOF, THEREBY CLOSING THE INNER SIDE OF SAID GROOVE AND PROVIDING AN ANNULAR CHAMBER IN SAID FACE OF SAID HEAD CASING, AN ANNULAR SERIES OF CIRCUMFERENTIALLY SPACED OUTWARDLY FLARING SPRAY GROOVES IN THE TAPERED SURFACE OF SAID PLUG, EACH SAID SPRAY GROOVE COMMUNICATING AT ITS INNER SMALLER END WITH THE INTERIOR OF SAID HEAD CASING AND AT ONE SIDE THEREOF WITH SAID ANNULAR GROOVE TO PROVIDE A COMMON MIXING CHAMBER THEREIN, AND MEANS FOR SUPPLYING A DETERGENT TO SAID ANNULAR GROOVE. 